Game Day 2 - PNG convincing winners over Australian Indigenous/Multicultural side in first-ever WIC clash

Monday, August 15 2011 @ 07:09 pm ACST

Contributed by: Tobietta Rhyman

The first-ever Women's International Cup match was played this morning, with Papua New Guinea coming out against the Australian Muliticultural and Indigenous side. The match was tight early, but the PNG Flame pulled away from the AMI by quarter time, eventually running out 50-point winners.

Initially the two teams looked even, both taking a while before finding their feet on the wide oval. PNG Flame drew first blood, Analg Vinnie Isaac's kick sailing cleanly between the posts. But it never looked like it was going to go the Flame's way as the Australian Multicultural Indigenous team soon countered. There was a struggle in midfield for a while, but as the game progressed, the Flame really pulled together and started dominating the field, resulting in another two goals for Isaac before quarter time.

In the second quarter, and fight left in the AMI was crushed when the flames got a goal, straight off the bounce. After that the game was all the Flame's way. The AMI girls put up a brave fight on the back line, forcing errors from the PNG forwards who kicked two behinds, but they quickly found their kicking feet again, kicking another two goals before the siren went for half time.

The Flame seemed to come out even better at half time, but the AMI was also out to show how much they'd improved, pushing hard into the PNG back 50, but in the end were unable to break through their defensive wall. Then a mistake by one of the Flame's back liners almost allowed the Australian girls back into the game, but it went behind. Countering, the Flame pushed the play back out into midfield, where Isaac ran the ball all the way up into the forward 50 and kicked a fantastic goal. Fired up, the Flame tried for another, but were denied by some fantastic defending from the AMI girls.

The AMI team were much improved in the 4th quarter but it was too little too late. Eventually the Flame broke through and got two goals in quick succession and from then the fight never left the AMI's back 50. The girls pulled back and held their ground, denying the Flame two almost certain goals in a fantastic display of defending.